ARTICLES ABOUT CHICAGO CARD BY DATE - PAGE 3

The beginning of the Blue Line saw the beginning of a fare increase Monday. Riders who load up their card with cash saw the price of their Blue Line ride from O'Hare jump from $2.25 to $5 as part of CTA fare hikes that took effect Monday. Riders with daily, weekly or monthly unlimited ride passes didn't and won't pay the increase. Chicago Card users who pay per ride will not see the increase until this summer as the CTA works with O'Hare employees to encourage them to buy unlimited passes so they won't pay $5 fares every time they leave O'Hare.

CTA riders, it's time to replace those Chicago Cards with new passes—but just for a few days. The CTA announced last week it is partnering with Chicago daily deal site Groupon to offer discounted three-day unlimited travel passes—typically $14—for $9. The deal should be available later this month, the CTA said. CTA president Forrest Claypool said he hopes the deal, which will generate nearly $2 million for the agency, will encourage visitors and infrequent riders to explore the city using trains and buses.

Everyone's used to characters on the CTA. Now the CTA is using characters - about 140 of them - to its advantage. The CTA on Thursday celebrated the one-month anniversary of its Twitter and Facebook accounts. Since it launched its social media presence on Nov. 1, the CTA has garnered more than 3,400 Twitter followers and more than 4,700 likes on its Facebook page. "We believe this is a valuable resource for customers," said Brian Steele, the new CTA director of communications and media relations, who regularly updates the agency's social media outlets with a few other CTA employees.

CTA riders, don't get excited to tap that pass just yet. The CTA board last week awarded a $454 million contract to Cubic Transportation Systems to devise a system that would allow CTA riders to use their credit and debit cards to pay their fares. Though the system is not expected to be implemented until 2014, Going Public has ID'd a few potential drawbacks to the proposal, which is a swipe in the right direction. > > Dollar back, ya'll: Cash would still be accepted on buses under the proposed system.